Time flies by
With rapid strides the end of the first term passed. After a bit more than two months all the workshops go into a longer break for six weeks, to give the students time for preparate their exams and of course their well-deserved vacation. This gives me time to pass in review the first term und to concentrate on other projects coming up.
Our education seems to make an impact. These become apparent especially in the analysis of famous film scenes, where the Students are already explaining very detailed and with a profound knowledge, the different camera shots and angles as well as their effects and emotions. For the workshop-free time we gave the kids the task to write a well structured script for a short movie, that comes into their mind. Hopefully we can start in January with planning and realisation by a short movie out of one of the scripts.
But workshop-free-time means not, that it´s going to be boring. There will be enough other activities to concentrate on. It gives me time and space to realize another personal project for Aim: A documentation about the the energy-system in Ghana and the plan of Aim to install solar panels on the Aim Training Center. That gives Aim the opportunity to be independent from the ghanaian electricity-system and their power failures, which repeatedly occurrent. While most of the people in Komenda can also work without electricity during the day time – most Tailors for example are still working with manually used machines – our activities and those in the Aim Training Center come to standstill. Is the power gone and also the batteries of our laptops down, it´s a big obstacle to write Blog Posts for Aim, prepare the workshop lessons and investigate for a documentation. In the case of a power failure, usually also the internet goes off. But here it should be noted, that the internet works, away of the explained case, very well. For 20 Cedi (4,70 Euro) you get 1 GB Data, which has to be charged on your phone (it often happens to me, that I even get 1 GB Bonus). With this data-volume it´s very easy to surf the web and to call other people on whatts app.
While in December Interviews and shooting days are limited to Komenda, the beginning of January is planned for longer trips to Takoradi and the Volta Region, to the big dams, where the main part of the ghanaian power comes from hydrological plants. For now, we have to wait for the results of the elections, which take place as I´m writing this article. Indeed I experience Ghana as a very peaceful country, where I can hardly imagine violent riots, but at least for the election day the Aim people gave us the advice to stay in the surrounding of our neighborhood. Small riots in front of polling stations occurred in recent years, which however not affect the bottom line of ghanaian democracy.
Happy St. Nicholas Day from sunny Ghana:
